Ire
by Stephanie18
Summary: Max is in Manticore and meets someone with a...er...problem. We're pretending the premiere didn't happen, kay?
1. Introducing Ire

Ire  
  
  
A/N: Um...I got extremely angry one day (Jessica knows why, lol) and an odd idea popped into my head. This is my idea...mostly. I have had this written for about two months and I just finally got around to posting it. I should've gotten this posted before the premier, but you know what? I didn't. So there. Lets pretend that the premiere didn't happen, shall we? Title is subject to change.  
  
Disclaimer: Me? Oh, I don't own anything. Oh wait! I can actually say that I own Ire and Theo. Mwhahahaha! Take that Mr. Help The Boat Is Sinking! Anyway, Dark Angel belongs to Mr. Help The Boat Is Sinking and Egg-Man.  
  
  
  
  
"XS-618 is having another fit." The guard reported.  
  
"She's having those rather often now, isn't she?" Renfro asked.  
  
"Yes, ma'am. Shall we have her sedated?"  
  
"No, let her get it all out. I want to talk to her afterwards." Renfro said. "You're dismissed."  
  
The guard just nodded and left the office. Renfro leaned back in her chair and thought about XS-618 and the problems she had caused lately. Two guards dead and four more injured. Renfro had to admit that her record for violent outbursts was horrific, but her skills as a soldier were amazing.  
  
"Madam Director."  
  
Renfro was pulled from her thoughts. The guard had come back.  
  
"Yes?" Renfro half-snapped.  
  
"XS-618 has stopped. It is safe to see her now." The guard said.  
  
"Excellent." Renfro said and left the office. She made her way to where XS-618 was kept. Two well-armed guards were standing on either side of the door. "I wish to go in."  
  
"It isn't safe, ma'am." The left guard said.  
  
"Has she stopped raging?" Renfro asked. She knew that she would not be denied.  
  
"Yes, but she is still very dangerous." The guard told her.  
  
"She will not dare attack me." Renfro said.  
  
"She attacks anyone." The guard told her. "Rank means nothing to her when she is angered."  
  
"You yourself just told me that she had stopped raging. Let me inside." Renfro demanded.  
  
The guards looked at each other, then the right guard pulled out a key. He unlocked the door, then the left guard opened it. Once Renfro was inside, the door was shut behind her. Renfro glanced at the girl sitting on the bed. The girl's brown hair was pulled up into a ponytail (they were afraid to try and cut it) and her green eyes were full of hate. Renfro then sat in a chair near the wall.  
  
"Do you want something?" The girl snapped, a small trace of anger evident.  
  
"Ire is it?"  
  
"That's what they call me." The girl answered.  
  
"Well, Ire," Renfro said. "I'm curious about your anger. You've been having quite a few outbursts lately."  
  
"So I have." Ire said. "Does it really matter?"  
  
"When you can kill two of our best, it does matter." Renfro said coolly. "Tell me, why were you angered today?"  
  
"The new guards wouldn't let me out. They apparently weren't told that I've got roaming rights." Ire said.  
  
"Ah, well, they shall be alerted. We don't want anymore...accidents."  
  
"I don't have accidents."  
  
"Of course not." Renfro said, standing. "I'll go and tell them of your rights."  
  
Renfro left the room and turned sharply to the two guards. She looked at them for a minute, letting fear wash over them.  
  
"XS-618 has special privileges." She began. "She shall not be denied these privileges and do you know why that is?" Neither guard said a thing. "Because we don't want her to have anymore outbursts! People die when she is angry and we don't need her taking down everyone in sight! Keep her happy! Do you understand?"  
  
"Yes, ma'am." Both guards said and saluted.  
  
Renfro looked at them, then walked off down the hall. 


	2. She Walks

Ire stood in front of the door, waiting for the guards to open it and let her out. She wanted to walk. She needed to walk. She never did like her "room," as they called it. She saw it as more of a cell. There had been a feeble attempt to make her feel comfortable, but that was only because they were afraid she would kill everyone.  
  
"Go on." The guard said when he opened the door.  
  
Ire stepped out of her room and looked down both hallways. She decided to go right today, where she knew she heard Renfro go after her visit.  
Ire always hated her. She could never see why everyone had feared the almighty Director; she could snap her neck any time she felt like it.  
  
Ire walked down the hall, passing doors that she never bothered to even glance at. Ire was never concerned about the others that were inside Manticore, she had no reason to care. She was a reject from her group because of her "disability." Ire laughed. They called it a disability, but it wasn't that. Ire knew that they were afraid to call it what it truly was. A defect. She knew that if they ever called her defective, that she would snap and kill. Ire laughed again; she had only killed two people inside Manticore's walls because they had been trying to shoot her. Ire stopped at an open door and peeked in. The X7s were training inside. Ire knew that she couldn't let them see her, because even the child demons feared her.  
  
Ire sighed and walked on. She had never been able to train with the others in her group; everyone had feared that she would get upset if she was beaten and might harm one of her own. Ire was angered by the fact that they could even imagine that she would hurt her own. It didn't help matters when she took down a guard and tried to kill him because he had delivered the news. It was obvious that Ire had never heard the expression, 'Don't kill the messenger.'  
  
Ire paused by another open door. She looked inside and saw a chair with terrible devices sticking out everywhere. Ire knew what the room was; it was the room where they reprogrammed you. Ire looked at each spot on the chair and identified the uses.  
  
'The locks, restrain them to the chair.' Ire thought as she identified it all. 'That keeps their eyes open. Foot restraints, tubes, gags...'  
  
Ire couldn't stand it anymore and turned away from the room. She walked down the hall a little ways, when screams from behind her made her turn around.  
  
"You bastards!" A woman was screaming. "I'm never coming back! You can't keep me here!"  
  
Two guards struggled with the woman then took her inside the reprogramming room. Ire stared at the closed door, then walked away when she heard a horrible scream.  
  
Ire finally decided that she hated this place. 


	3. The Meeting

Ire had been walking all day and she was getting rather sick of it. She noticed that it was night, which meant most of the guards had gone, leaving her to roam the halls as she pleased.  
  
Ire stopped in front of the reprogramming room door, then, after a brief inner battle, opened the door. She could hear words repeating over and over, but they were faint.  
  
Ire walked into the room and saw that there was still someone in the chair. Ire walked around and switched off the projector that was showing images of people and words. Ire could still hear the faint words, repeating over and over. She walked over to a small tape player. She followed the cord to a pair of headphones and saw the woman that she had seen earlier in the day. Ire pulled the headphones off and shut the tape player off. Ire didn't like the weak feeling that she saw in the woman's eyes.  
  
"What're you doing in here?"  
  
A guard had appeared in the doorway and was looking at Ire. Ire straightened up and looked him in the eye.  
  
"Whatever I damn well please." Ire snapped.  
  
The guard gave her a look and entered the room. He glanced at the woman in the reprogramming chair, then back at Ire and smirked.  
  
"You're not authorized to be in here. In light of recent events on the lab, I have orders to shoot and kill all that I don't recognize." The guard said and raised his gun.  
  
Ire knew that she could simply show him the barcode on her neck, but she was overwhelmed by rage. She usually knew where her rage came from, but this time it was just rage.  
  
Ire kicked the guard in the side of the head and he fell. He dropped his gun and tried to reach for it, but ire stepped on his wrist hard, breaking it. She leant down next to him and grabbed his neck.  
  
"How does it feel to be number three?" She hissed in his ear, then there was a sickening crack. That was it. Ire stood up; he was dead.  
Ire looked at the woman in the chair, then undid all the restraints and gag.  
  
The woman stood up, massaging her wrists and stared bewildered at Ire.  
  
"Who are you?" She asked.  
  
"They all call me Ire." Ire said. "What about you? Why were you in here? What did you do?"  
  
"I'm Max." She said simply. "I did a lot of things that they didn't like."  
  
"I do a lot of things they don't like either. They're all scared of me; all afraid that I'll kill them." Ire said and looked down at the guard.  
  
"Why?" Max asked.  
  
"I have an imbalance. They created me to have an edge, but they misjudged and I'm much more temperamental than they had planned. He's the third guard I've killed and I've injured others. I'm quite dangerous when I have what the Director calls outbursts." Ire explained.  
  
"Everyone is afraid of you?" Max asked, glancing at the guard.  
  
"Mostly all of them...even the demon children, the X7s." Ire said. "The Director thinks I would never attack someone of a high rank, so she feels safe."  
  
"But she shouldn't feel safe? Should she?" Max asked.  
  
"No." Ire said simply. "I'm going back to my room now. You can escape if you want."  
  
Ire started walking toward the door, but Max called out.  
  
"Wait! You're just going back to your room? Just like that?"  
  
"Yes." Ire said. "I have no where else to go and I don't wish to hurt innocent people out there in the real world. The right side of the building is the most unprotected, you should exit that way when you leave."  
  
"I-I won't go without you." Max said; she couldn't just leave this girl.  
  
"You're a fool." Ire said. "I can't be trusted with people. Many experiences have taught me that much."  
  
"You are a person, don't talk about yourself like you're different from people." Max said. "You are coming with me."  
  
"I've killed three people inside these walls and countless others in battle. I've severely injured four others in here. My rage would have me back here sooner than later." Ire said.  
  
"You've only done that in Manticore." Max said. "It would be different outside."  
  
"It wouldn't be different!" Ire exclaimed. "For God sakes, my name means intense and openly displayed anger. One of my former guards thought being called XS-618 for the rest of my life was cruel, so he gave me the name of anger, as he called it. He's dead now."  
  
"You can leave. I'll even help you. Just come with me and you'll see." Max said.  
  
Ire was seriously considering it, when someone flipped on the lights. Ire turned and saw Renfro standing in the doorway, holding a walkie-talkie.  
  
"X5-452 is poisoning XS-618's mind." Renfro said into the talkie. "Send three well-armed soldiers." 


	4. Her Lies

"You don't believe her, do you XS-618?" Renfro asked, walking into the room.  
  
Ire was torn. She did want to leave, after all, Manticore was hell, but her rage would hold her back forever in the real world. Ire looked from Max to Renfro, back and forth.  
  
"I-I don't know." Ire mumbled.  
  
"You would be an outcast out there. Your rage would keep you back forever. You'd never get anywhere, you'd be killing so many people and you do hate killing." Renfro said.  
  
"No!" Max exclaimed. You wouldn't be doing that. Don't listen to her lies!"  
  
"Lies...lies...lies!" Ire said. She was now burning with rage and Renfro knew it.  
  
"She's telling you lies Ire. She's poisoning your mind. There is only one way to deal with those who lie to you." Renfro was egging her on, to kill Max.  
  
"Now, I know who's lying to me." Ire said through gritted teeth, looking at Max. Max could see the rage building in Ire and she knew she was going to explode. "All the lies...lies...LIES!"  
  
Ire launched herself at Renfro. They both toppled to the ground, but Ire was unfazed; she beat Renfro. Max stood by horrified as Ire grabbed Renfro's neck and bent down to speak in her ear.  
  
"Do you want to be number four? Are you ready to die? What are you thinking right now? Am I crazy? Are you going to kill me if I don't kill you? Why did you lie? Are you scared?" Ire hissed.  
  
Renfro was shaking with fear as she looked into Ire's eyes, which were full of fiery rage.  
  
"You-you w-wouldn't kill me wo-would you?" Renfro asked.  
  
"I would kill you in an instant." Ire said, then dropped Renfro and stood up and looked at Max. "This," she said to Max, "is why I can't live out there."  
  
Ire walked out of the room, leaving Max alone with Renfro, who was now unconscious.  
  
Max looked at the unconscious form of Renfro, then back at the door. She knew that three well-armed soldiers would be coming her way and she had to go, had to escape, but instead she ran after Ire.  
  
She caught her just as she was going down the hall. Max grabbed her arm and she spun around.  
  
"What?" Ire asked.  
  
"Go with me." Max urged.  
  
"Didn't you see what I did in there? Were you not paying attention when I was about to snap her neck? Didn't you notice that I was giving it no second thought? Did you see the rage in my eyes? Did you?"  
  
Max was taken aback at the barrage of questions that were running in the back of her mind too.  
  
"You can beat it." Max said. "You were trained for that, but you can beat it. I was trained for it too and look at me."  
  
"I wasn't trained the same as you." Ire said. "I was different. I wasn't allowed to play nice with the other little kids. They were trained the way you were, but me? I was trained harder. They tried to train the anger right out of me, but that didn't work. They let me in the training room after the others were done and they worked me to the point where I would pass out. They thought if I was weak, I wouldn't be able to hurt anybody. They were wrong. All that work did was give me time to build up more steam and one afternoon, a guard came to take me back to my room and I nearly killed him. They eventually stopped making me do anything and now I'm allowed to come and go as I please. I never take orders, not even when I'm fighting."  
  
"You can go anywhere you want? At any time?" Max asked.  
  
"Yeah, they're all afraid to stop me." Ire said.  
  
"I think I've got an idea then." Max said. 


	5. The Plan Has Changed

Ire took a deep breath and stood by the door. She and Max had run over the plan quickly and all Ire could do was hope that it worked. Renfro was not pleased with her at all, but, of course, Renfro passed it off as rage and confusion. Ire knew that she only did that to spare another outburst.  
  
"Go on then." The guard said as he opened the door.  
  
Ire stepped out and looked at the guards. They were new. Ire figured that the other guards got scared off. Ire laughed as she walked down the hall toward Renfro's office. She had gone through more guards than she could count.  
  
Ire didn't know what Renfro wanted with her. She hoped it wasn't something bad, because then she'd have to kill someone. Ire knew that Renfro would never make her mad, so Ire decided that Renfro was probably just going to feed her some lines about knowing it wasn't really her fault.  
  
Ire stopped in front of Renfro's office and knocked on the door. Another XS, that Ire knew as Theo, opened the door and just stared at Ire.  
  
"XS-916," Ire heard Renfro say. "Who is it?"  
  
"It is XS-618, ma'am." Theo answered, not looking away from Ire.  
  
"Let her in." Renfro said.  
  
Theo stepped aside and Ire walked into the room. Renfro had her arm in a sling and she looked weak and damaged, but she was still looking her emotionless self.  
  
"You can go now XS-916." Renfro said. Theo looked like he was about to argue, but thought better of it and left. "Are you wondering why I called you in here?"  
  
"As a matter of fact, I was." Ire said.  
  
"I know you've been cooped up in your room for quite a while and I thought you would like an assignment." Renfro said. Ire tried to search for a double meaning to her words, but couldn't find one. "Would you like to know what that assignment is?"  
  
"Yes, ma'am." Ire said through gritted teeth.  
  
"You will be retraining X5-452." Renfro said. "She has almost finished her reprogramming and now she needs to be retrained so she may be ready for battle. We feel that you are the only one that can handle her. She is rather...feisty. You don't believe the lies she told you, do you?"  
  
"No." Ire lied; she actually believed everything that Max had told her.  
  
"Good, good." Renfro said, a smile creeping onto her face. "X5-452 is in a reprogramming session, but she should be done by the time you get there. Take her out to field course one and give her a thorough workout."  
  
"Yes, ma'am." Ire said. She saluted then left to find Max. Ire thought about how Max looked the other night and decided that some training would do her good. Manticore security had increased greatly since the attack on the lab and Ire didn't want to risk running into it unprepared.  
  
Ire was walking in front of the reprogramming room just as the door opened and Max toppled out. Ire was quick and caught her. Ire glanced inside the room and saw a guard and a scientist, both looking rather smug.  
  
"What are you looking at? Take her to train." The scientist snapped.  
  
"What the hell do you think you're doing?" Ire asked angrily, helping Max up. "The Director won't be pleased to know that you're reprogramming X5-452 to the point where she can't even stand unassisted. What will she say when I tell her? I dare say it won't be good for you. This X5 is extremely important to Project Manticore."  
  
Their smug faces faltered for a minute, then the scientist just waved Ire off.  
  
"Just take her away." The scientist said, not even looking at Ire.  
  
Ire glowered angrily at them, then walked off, helping Max.  
  
"What happened?" Ire asked.  
  
"Just a little reprogramming, that's all." Max answered hoarsely.  
  
"Oh is that all?" Ire asked, pushing open a door to an empty office. "Tell me then, why are you so weak?"  
  
"I'm not weak." Max said as Ire helped her into a chair.  
  
"Not weak? Like hell you're not. What's going on with you?" Ire asked and sat in front of Max.  
  
"They're breaking me." Max said, looking at Ire with the saddest eyes Ire had ever seen. "I can feel it."  
  
"No!" Ire exclaimed and stood up. "They can't be breaking you. Don't you remember? Getting out is what matters. You've escaped before and you're going to do it again. Do you hear me?"  
  
"I hear you." Max said. "But I can't do it."  
  
"When I first met you and you told me your little plan, you didn't seem like the kind of person to give up. Why are you giving up now?" Ire was trying to control the anger that was bubbling up inside of her.  
  
"I don't know. It's just that with all this reprogramming..."  
  
"Stop talking like that. Think of the Max that you were outside. What would that Max say?"  
  
Max stood up immediately and got a hard expression on her face.  
  
"Lets kick ass." Max said.  
  
Ire just smiled and told Max about the slight change of plans. 


	6. Training

After Max was hip to the new plan, Ire led her to field course one. When Max saw it, her jaw dropped.  
  
"This is field course one?" Max asked, looking at the huge obstacle course.  
  
"Yep, it's the easiest one too." Ire told her.  
  
"You're kidding right? This thing is huge. Who trains on this?" Max asked.  
  
"Well, the X6s and X7s trained on it for a while, but they were too advanced so they moved right on to field course four and they're still there. Mostly newly reprogrammed soldiers take this course." Ire said.  
  
Max just stared at the course. She stretched then stood at the starting point.  
  
"It's really not that hard." Ire told her.  
  
Max didn't say anything. She just got ready to go. Ire looked over and saw Renfro coming toward them.  
  
"What are you waiting for soldier?" Ire screamed at Max. "Go! Go! Go! Move!"  
  
Max was bewildered by the change in Ire's attitude but ran anyway. She ran the first few feet then dove down and crawled under barbed wire. Max shot up from the ground and ran to a wall. She grabbed the rope and climbed up. She jumped down the other side of the wall, then Ire lost her.  
  
"How far along is she?" Renfro asked, coming up behind Ire.  
  
"She just went over the wall, ma'am." Ire said. "I don't know her current location."  
  
"Do you think that X5-452 is loyal to Manticore?" Renfro asked. Ire immediately knew her question was meant to find Max a traitor.  
  
"She is dedicated and willing to rejoin Manticore." Ire lied. Had Renfro really expected her to tell the truth? That Max was completely against Manticore and taking her with her?  
  
"Excellent." Renfro muttered as Max appeared at the finish. "Move her on to field course two."  
  
"But, she has just finished course one! Would it be wise to subject her to-"  
  
"I," Renfro said, cutting Ire off. "Will be the judge of all that. If she is loyal to Manticore, she will stick it out. I want to see her through course two."  
  
Ire gulped and walked over to Max with Renfro. Max was on her knees, catching her breath. Ire knew that Max had been pumped full of drugs and was weakened by them and was seriously considering just snapping Renfro's neck and sprinting off.  
  
"Field course two, soldier." Ire said, jerking her head to a much more difficult looking course.  
  
Max stood and looked at Renfro. She realized where Ire's earlier attitude had come from, Renfro was always watching.  
  
"Go on, get going." Ire said. Max just looked at her as she walked toward the course.  
  
Renfro smiled and put a hand on Ire's shoulder as Max stood at the starting point.  
  
"She'll be back with us in no time." Renfro said.  
  
Ire wanted to scream out loud and break Renfro's wrist; she hated the horrible woman and did not need her touching her shoulder.  
  
"Yes, I believe so." Ire said, holding in every urge to cringe and kill.  
  
"Get her started." Renfro said. "I don't want to be standing here all day."  
  
"Soldier!" Ire yelled to Max. "Go! Move!"  
  
Max ran around the track, jumped through the tires, jumped over strategically placed bear traps, then disappeared over another wall, making Renfro and Ire lose sight of her.  
  
"Has she told you of any contacts outside?" Renfro asked, as they walked along to the finish.  
  
"No." Ire said. It was true, Max didn't tell her much of her life outside.  
  
"That's too bad." Renfro said as she watched Max wind through barbed poles. "Try to get close to her, let her tell you things."  
  
'Too late.' Ire thought.  
  
"Get all the information out of her that you can. I'm putting you in charge of her regiments. We want her back on the side of Manticore as fast as possible and you can do it I'm sure." Renfro said.  
  
Ire didn't think that was what Renfro had really been planning, but she didn't bother to think about it now. Max had finished course two and was looking horrible.  
  
"I'm going to go and take care of some things." Renfro said and walked off.  
  
Ire walked over to Max and helped her up.  
  
Renfro walked to the door to reenter the building and was greeted by a soldier.  
  
"Madam, you don't really trust XS-618, do you?" The soldier asked.  
  
"Of course not." Renfro said. "I just need a good reason to terminate the both of them." 


	7. They Fight

Ire watched them drag Max into the reprogramming room. A shiver went down her spine as she herself entered the room. Being Max's new guardian, it was Ire's duty to be around when Max was training or being reprogrammed.  
  
Ire's favorite place to sit when she had to be in the reprogramming room with Max was in the darkest corner in the room; she would sit on the most uncomfortable chair imaginable and just wait for it all to be over. Today, Ire's chair was missing.  
  
"You." She said to a guard. "Where is the chair that goes here?"  
  
"It's been removed." The guard told her with a smirk.  
  
Ire just glared at him and walked to the corner. She sat down Indian-style and looked forward, watching the same images that Max had to endure. Most of the images didn't make any sense to Ire, they were pictures of people that she had never seen in her life, but they must've meant something to Max for them to keep replaying things like 'Enemy' and 'Traitor' along with them. The only things Ire recognized were the words. Duty. Mission. Objective. Soldier. Manticore. Loyalty. Ire blinked. She couldn't let herself get swept up in it all.  
  
Ire was surprised when a technician shut off the projector and removed the restraints from Max. Ire was alarmed. The only way they would do that was if...Ire stood, worried, and walked over to the technician.  
  
"What...why did you turn it all off?" Ire tried to hide her concern and tried to seem like she felt the reprogramming should continue.  
  
"There is no need to keep going." The technician said. "She is once again loyal to Manticore."  
  
Ire looked at Max and saw nothing. All Ire saw was the emotionless face of a trained killer.  
  
"Max?" Ire muttered. Max didn't respond. "X5-452?"  
  
"X5-452 reporting!" Max shouted and stood up, perfectly straight.  
  
Ire was horrified and angered, but she concealed both well. She tried to put a pleased look on her face, but she wasn't even sure if it was possible.  
  
"Is she really loyal to Manticore?" Ire asked the technician.  
  
"Through and through." The technician replied.  
  
"So, nothing else needs to be done? Other than training?" Ire asked.  
  
"She has yet to tell us of her personal life on the outside, but there will be a short session after training today." The technician told her.  
  
"All right then." Ire said. "I'll-I'll take her out to train, then we can all be-be done with her." Ire started to walk towards the door, but realized Max wasn't following her. "M - X5-452, follow me."  
  
Max turned on her heel and followed Ire down the hall. They walked in silence, only because Ire wasn't saying anything and knew perfectly well that Max wouldn't speak unless spoken to.  
  
"Out." Ire said and opened the door for Max.  
  
Max did as she was told and Ire's heart sank. There would be no way out unless Max was back, as her real self.  
  
Ire walked out of the building, but Max had disappeared. Ire scanned the yard, but there was no sign of Max. Ire heard soft footsteps behind her and got ready. Max grabbed her around the neck, but Ire was ready and instead of Max flipping Ire, Ire flipped Max.  
  
"What the hell do you think you're doing?" Ire shouted.  
  
"The objective is to destroy XS-618." Max said and got right back up.  
  
It suddenly dawned on Ire. Everything was happening for a reason now, they'd reprogrammed Max and were using her to destroy her. Ire knew it, they were just destroying the defective XS that killed people.  
  
Max tried to kick Ire in the head, but Ire was much more advanced and grabbed Max's ankle and flipped her. Max flew back and landed hard on her back.  
  
"Listen to me, Max." Ire said as Max shot up with an angry look on her face.  
  
"Max is gone. I am X5-452." Max said and tried to rush at Ire, but Ire grabbed her around the middle and slammed her down.  
  
"I don't want to have to beat it out of you Max." Ire said. "You are Max, not X5-452. You are a person, don't speak of yourself like you're not one."  
  
"I am a soldier." Max said grabbed Ire's arm and twisted it.  
  
Ire screamed in pain and fell to her knees. That's when she snapped. Ire was angry and Max was in trouble. Ire, breathing heavily, grabbed Max's leg with her good hand and twisted. Max screamed and fell to the ground.  
  
"I'm trying to keep a level head Max." Ire said, standing over her. "But do you know hard it is with this rage building inside of me?"  
  
Max just glowered at Ire, then got back up. Max kicked Ire in the side and she fell down, onto her bad arm. Ire, clutching her arm stood up. She looked at Max with such rage that if Max wasn't brainwashed, she would have run.  
  
"Don't make me kill you." Ire said through clenched teeth.  
  
Max's reply was a swift punch to the stomach. Ire grabbed Max's wrist and lifted her off the ground. Max looked at the ground beneath her, then at Ire.  
  
"You don't scare me." Max said, almost as raging as Ire...almost.  
  
"You should be." Ire growled and threw Max to the ground. Ire kicked Max in the leg. Max reached down and grabbed her leg, howling in pain.  
Max let go of her leg and her face changed from pain to anger.  
  
"You're going to die." Max said and swept Ire's feet. Ire landed, supporting herself with her hands.  
  
"Is that all you've got soldier?" Ire asked and stood.  
  
Max said nothing, but tackled Ire instead. They struggled on the ground for a little while, finally ending up with Ire pinning Max down.  
  
"I'm sorry I have to do this Max." Ire said and punched Max with all her might. 


	8. Slap Therapy

Ire walked into the building, dirty and tired, with Max slung over her shoulder, still unconscious.  
  
Ire walked past a few guards who averted their eyes. Ire walked to her room and saw it was unguarded. Ire scoffed and walked inside.  
  
'They finally got so scared that they just let me be finally.' Ire thought as she put Max on the bed. 'They even removed the lock and everything. Ah, but that's probably because they think I'm dead.'  
  
Max began to stir and Ire shut the door and stood in front of it. There was no way Max was leaving now, not like that.  
  
Max groaned and her eyes fluttered open. For a moment Ire saw the real Max, but that left as soon as she sat up with the emotionless soldier look.  
  
"Why am I in here? The objective still exists." Max said and stood up.  
  
"Sit down." Ire barked. She was in no mood to take anything from Max right now. Max sat back on the bed and Ire walked over and stood in front of her, a few feet away.  
  
"The objective is still to destroy XS-618." Max said.  
  
"Not anymore." Ire said.  
  
"You are in no position to change my objective." Max said. "My commanding officers have been made clear to me and I only follow their orders."  
  
"Like I said, not anymore Max." Ire said.  
  
"I am X5-452. Max is gone."  
  
Ire backhanded Max and looked away, on tears in her eyes. Ire had never experienced so many emotions at once before and it frightened her to no end.  
  
"Now, tell me about your life on the outside." Ire said.  
  
"I have no outside life. My life is Manticore. I am loyal only to Manticore." Max said.  
  
Ire backhanded her again, but she knew it was the only way.  
  
"What do you remember about your outside life Max?" Ire asked, slightly more gentle. She had just slapped Max in the face, but she had to keep some type of gentleness to coax Max back to herself.  
  
"I-I remember Cindy." Max muttered.  
  
"Who is Cindy?" Ire asked.  
  
"Original Cindy was the only real friend I-no! Manticore! I am Manticore! Manticore is my only friend!" Max exclaimed.  
  
Ire delivered another swift backhand to Max's face.  
  
"Tell me who Original Cindy was." Ire demanded.  
  
"Original Cindy was the only real friend I ever had." Max said. "I even told her about me."  
  
"Good. What else?" Ire demanded more than asked.  
  
"I remember...I remember...I remember Manticore!" Max exclaimed.  
  
"No!" Ire yelled and backhanded Max again. "Manticore is dead! Do you hear me? Manticore is dead to you!"  
  
"Dead." Max repeated."  
  
"Now, what else do you remember about the outside?" Ire asked.  
  
"I remember...I remember Logan." Max muttered.  
  
"Who is Logan?" Ire asked.  
  
"Logan is...is...Manticore! Manticore! Manti-"  
  
Ire had slapped her again. Ire hated it, but she knew it was the only thing that would work. She had seen it work on Theo, but the opposite way. Theo was talking wildly about the outside world and was taught a lesson. Theo was backhanded when he spoke good of the outside world. He learned to associate the outside world with pain and Manticore without pain. That was a backwards lie, but it did work. Max would learn to associate Manticore with pain and the outside without pain, like she did before.  
  
"Now, who is Logan?" Ire asked. Ire could see a bruise forming on Max's cheek, but she didn't care about that right now. That was trivial compared to the task at hand.  
  
"Logan is...M-m-m...Logan is...he's Ey....Logan is..."  
  
"A friend?" Ire offered, sensing that Max was having trouble placing this Logan guy.  
  
"Yeah...a-a friend. But...stuff has been happening, but...but now I'm back at Manticore so it doesn't matter!" Max exclaimed.  
  
Ire backhanded Max again as the rage was building inside of her.  
  
"Everything matters." Ire said. "I know you remember being in Manticore. Do you remember in '09?"  
  
"Y-yes." Max said.  
  
"That was the year you escaped. You left Manticore forever." Ire said, her voice softening. "Why did you leave?"  
  
"I-I...I didn't like it here." Max said.  
  
Ire smiled. They were finally making some progress.  
  
"Do you like it here now?" Ire asked, raising her hand as a threat.  
  
"No." Max said, then immediately closed her eyes, expecting a slap. When she didn't feel one, she opened her eyes and saw ire smiling at her.  
  
"Was that the truth Max?" Ire asked.  
  
"Yes, it was the honest truth." Max answered.  
  
"Max, do you mind me calling you Max?"  
  
"No." Max replied. "It is my name after all."  
  
"What does Manticore mean to you Max?" Ire asked.  
  
"Pain. Lots of pain." Max said.  
  
"Max, what would you say if I suggested an escape?" Ire asked. This was the clincher question. When Theo answered this question, the doctors were all too pleased. He had said he would never think of escaping for Manticore was too great to leave.  
  
"If you're suggesting an escape...." Max paused, then looked at Ire with sad eyes. "Take me with you."  
  
"I am Max, I am. You're coming with me. It was actually your idea...do you remember?" Ire asked.  
  
"Y-yes." Max said after a while. Max stood up and began to pace. "I suggested that we take out the guards on the right side because you said that was less guarded, then I said we would run to the fence and jump it and just go and never look back."  
  
"Exactly." Ire said with a smile. "But we're going to need a new plan."  
  
"Another one?" Max asked. "Why?"  
  
"Because, I'm supposed to be dead." Ire said with a grin. 


	9. The Escape

Max wrung her hands as she paced back and forth in her cell. Ire assured her that the plan would work, but Max had an uneasy feeling in her stomach.  
  
'Okay,' Max thought. 'The plan is simple. Ire is hidden in an old office where no one goes because of the nomalies, so no one should find her. They think she's dead, and that I killed her. They think I'm loyal to them, so getting out shouldn't be a big problem, unless we run into one.' Max took a deep breath and heard footsteps approaching her cell door. 'Nothing to worry about. Just the guy coming to take me to the Director. I just have to act all brainwashed while I'm with her, then she'll let me go and I'll slip to the office, knock two times, pause, then one more knock and Ire'll come out and we'll head to the right of the building and knock out anything in our way, then we'll jump the fence and run like the wind.'  
  
Max ran the plan over and over in head until her cell door was opened and a guard stood there.  
  
"Ready?" He asked.  
  
Max tried to look as reprogrammed soldier-like as possible, but it was hard. She only nodded, not trusting herself to speak.  
  
When they reached Renfro's office, the guard left her and she walked in.  
  
"Ah, X5-452, good to see you." Renfro said. She was now out of her sling, but Max wanted to get her a pretty new one.  
  
"Yes, ma'am." Max said. She hoped she wasn't being overly soldiery.  
  
"How has your training been going? I hear you're on course four, one behind the X7s now?"  
  
"Yes, ma'am." Max said.  
  
"Those X7s do go at an amazing pace, don't they?" Renfro asked, looking down at the X7s from her window.  
  
"Yes, ma'am." Max said, tired of repeating herself.  
  
"Well," Renfro said and sat down behind her desk. "I suppose you're wondering why you're here. Well, after the loss of XS-618 and the mishap with her body, we've been looking for two soldiers to go about the X7s and train them better. We don't want any more defects such as the one XS-618 had, so we're checking for them now. Would you like to know who you are working with?"  
  
"Yes, ma'am." Max said. She was playing an old Pre-Pulse song in her head now and couldn't be bothered with Renfro's mindless babble, so Max just figured the universal response was good to use.  
  
"X5-734." Renfro called. That caught Max's attention and she looked toward the door when it opened.  
  
Brin walked into the room and shut the door behind her, then stood at attention.  
  
'So, that's how brainwashees stand. Okay then.' Max thought and copied Brin's stance.  
  
"X5-452, you will be working with X5-734 on the X7 project." Renfro said. "Now, the X7s are training in the yard. You better get moving."  
  
"Yes, ma'am." Max and Brin said in unison, then left the office.  
  
Max thanked whatever higher power that existed when she saw they were going in the direction of the room Ire was hiding in.  
  
"So," Brin asked as they walked. "Are you truly loyal to Manticore?"  
  
"With every fiber of my being." Max said, then finished in thought, 'I think it's hell and want to get out.'  
  
"Excellent. I'm relieved that you've seen the error of your ways." Brin said. "There is nothing better than being at Manticore."  
  
Max just nodded. When they got to Ire's door, Max paused. She had a very brief inner struggle, then knocked.  
  
"What are you doing?" Brin asked.  
  
"I'm sorry." Max said as Ire came from the door.  
  
"Who is she?" Ire asked. "Is she coming with us?"  
  
"X5-452, what is going on?" Brin asked.  
  
"No, she's not. She never wants to." Max said.  
  
"I'm sorry then." Ire said and walked over to Brin. Brin was still too shocked to react. Ire punched her between the eyes and Brin fell back.  
  
"One punch?" Max said, amazed.  
  
"It's a trick I picked up. Right between the eyes and well...anyway, we have to go now before anyone gets wise." Ire said, stepping over Brin.  
  
"I will get you out." Max whispered to Brin, then joined Ire.  
  
Ire was looking out the door, sizing everything up.  
  
"Now, once we get out there," Ire whispered. "We can walk a few feet safely, but then we have to run for our lives because the X7s will be on us in seconds followed by the dogs. When we get in the woods we just have to keep going because they'll have let the dogs and X7s loose."  
  
"Got it." Max whispered.  
  
Ire held up three fingers, then ticked them down. They both took deep breaths and left the building. They were able to walk five safe feet, then a guard noticed Ire alive and well when she was supposed to be dead.  
  
"Move! X7s assemble!" They heard him yell, then Max and Ire ran for their lives as a loud alarm sounded and booming barks sounded behind them.  
  
"Run!" Max screamed. They both panicked, but kept on going anyway. Their goal was to reach the fence and jump, and nothing would stop them.  
  
"Criss cross!" Ire screamed as bullets whizzed by them, missing only by inches. They both began to criss cross from side to side so that the shooters would have a much harder target. "One two jump!"  
  
They had reached the fence and jumped. For a second Max thought maybe they wouldn't make it, but that was only a second. They had reached the ground on the other side before Max could even finish the thought.  
  
"Split up." Ire said and, before Max could object, ran left into the forest.  
  
Max looked after her, but a gunshot whizzed past her head and she ran for the forest, to the right. Max knew Ire was right about the dogs and X7s when she heard about five pairs of feet rushing along behind her and the occasional bark.  
  
Max ran through the forest, not even caring about the cuts she was getting, all she cared about was getting away from the child demons. Max ran until her legs were numb and felt like they were about to fall off. She ended up in a small clearing and found it quiet. Too quiet.  
  
Max braced herself for whatever would happen next. Max heard footsteps behind her, then the cocking of a gun. This felt a little too familiar for her.  
  
Max slowly turned around, but instead of her clone, she saw Renfro standing there, pointing the gun right at her.  
  
"This is my dream." Renfro said. "I want to kill every single one of 'Deck's kids, but oh you. You are the sweetest kill of them all you know. His favorite. I knew you were never really loyal, but you killing XS-618? That was excellent. I had actually believed that you had done it until I saw her rushing along beside you."  
  
Max just looked beyond Renfro, expecting to see five little clones with guns stampeding through the trees.  
  
"Looking for the X7s?" Renfro said. "I told them to stay back. You were mine. I don't see you're little friend coming to help you. That may be because the dogs have gotten to her, but who knows? I told the X7s that you were mine...and now you are."  
  
Renfro raised the gun and Max closed her eyes, waiting to die. But Max heard the gunshot, but she felt nothing. Dare she open her eyes?  
  
Yes. 


	10. Free At Last

Max opened her eyes and looked before her. There was Ire, wrestling with Renfro for the gun. Ire punched Renfro in the stomach and Renfro dropped the gun.  
  
Ire threw the gun as far as she could, then bent down to Renfro and grabbed her neck, then leaned in to speak into her ear.  
  
"Remember what happened last time? It was just anger and confusion, you said. What do you think it is now? You know what you are? You're number four....and this time, you will become that number." Ire hissed, then Max turned away. Max only heard the crack of bones.  
  
"We have to leave now." Ire said.  
  
Max turned and looked at Ire. Renfro was dead of course, but Max couldn't believe it. She thought Ire had changed, but then she realized that it was in Ire's genetics and it forever would be.  
  
"I said we have to leave now." Ire said and began to walk away.  
  
"Where did you come from?" Max asked, walking alongside Ire.  
  
"I was hiding in the tree. I saw her coming and I knew I had to wait for the right moment." Ire said and stopped at a small hill, near a road.  
  
"Where will you go from here?" Max asked.  
  
"Down." Ire replied simply and walked swiftly down the hill. Max sighed and followed.  
  
"I meant-"  
  
"I know what you meant." Ire said, following the road. "I don't know where I'll go."  
  
"Come with me then." Max said.  
  
"I don't think so." Ire said.  
  
"Why not?" Max asked. "You could help me out with my second job."  
  
"No, I can't be around people. I need to be secluded." Ire said.  
  
"Why?" Max asked.  
  
"I haven't quite mastered my temper yet." Ire said and laughed a little.  
  
"Where are you going to go?" Max asked.  
  
"I don't know. I'll probably go into Canada for a while. Just lay low up there, somewhere secluded." Ire said.  
  
"So, what about people finding us? We're walking on a road."  
  
"This is a main road." Ire said. "They won't be sending out troops or anything here, they would bring way too much attention to themselves and questions would be asked."  
  
"Right." Max muttered and looked down at the road.  
  
They walked for a while, not even realizing how far they'd gone, until Max looked and noticed it was dusk.  
  
"Well," Ire said, suddenly stopping and turning to Max. "This is where I leave you."  
  
"What?" Max asked.  
  
"I'm going to head up in the woods there, then I'm going to zigzag my way to Canada." Ire explained.  
  
"Oh, okay." Max said.  
  
They hugged, then Ire looked at the other side of the road.  
  
"Try and visit." Max said.  
  
"I will." Ire said, then walked across the road. She turned one last time and waved, then walked off into the woods.  
  
Max continued walking and didn't stop until it was mid-afternoon. She reached the old, decaying sign that read 'Welcome to Seattle' and she smiled happily.  
  
"Home." Max whispered, then walked past the sign, into the city.  
  
THE END  
  
I have a sequel for this already written. If the reviews are good, I'll post it. Let me know if you want the sequel, let me know. =) 


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